The present invention relates to a butterlike composition and method of manufacturing same, and more particularly, to a butterlike composition of natural, unmodified vegetable oils and nutritional fibers. Specifically, the present invention concerns a novel technology for vegetable oil solidification, which preserves the oil's quality, its original molecular structure and composition, its biological characteristics and its nutritional value, by solidifying the oil with nutritional fibers.
Butterlike substances are soft whitish or yellowish fatty solids processed for cooking, frying and for table use as spreads. Examples include butter which is a soft whitish or yellowish fatty solid that separates from milk or cream when it is churned, and margarine which is made of refined vegetable oils which undergo chemical solidification (i.e., hydrogenation, saturation) and/or blended sometimes with animal fats and emulsified usually with water or milk.
The solid characteristic of all of the prior art butterlike substances results from the high percentage of saturated fatty acids contained therein. According to the prior art, solidification is achieved either by purification, as is the case for butter, or by hydrogenation or mixing with saturated fatty acids, as is the case for types of margarine. In both cases, however, the make-up of the oils employed, i.e., the chemical structure and/or composition are modified.
A large body of information indicates that daily consumption of saturated fatty acids has a bad influence of human health, especially due to the rise in blood cholesterol levels inflicted thereby and the possible development of cardiovascular diseases, arteriosclerosis and gallstones. In addition, butter itself includes high percentage of cholesterol which by itself increases the chances of developing such diseases.
Margarine, on the other hand, which also includes relatively high levels of saturated fat, is in most cases the product of catalyzed hydrogenation, which introduces trans fatty acids therein, which were shown to cause membrane alterations which may lead to development of cancer. Furthermore, during hydrogenation the chemical make-up of the vegetable oil employed for the production of margarine changes, and as a result, beneficiary influences of such make-up on human health is lost.
Vegetable oils, especially olive oil, are low in saturated fatty acids. Indeed, many studies have shown that olive oil consumption as a major source of fatty acids reduces blood cholesterol levels in patients suffering from high blood cholesterol (e.g., cholestoremia). It was further shown that olive oil consumption lowers the light density lipoprotein/high density lipoprotein (LDL/HDL) ratio in the blood, i.e., it decreases the blood level of "bad" cholesterol and thereby lowers the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. It is therefore not surprising that some physicians refer to olive oil as a medicament. Other vegetable oils are also known to have beneficiary effects on human health.
Consumption of nutritional fibers is known to reduce blood cholesterol, to assist in digestion and to lower the chances of developing intestine and colon cancers.
There is thus a widely recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, a butterlike composition devoid of the bad influences associated with butter and/or margarine consumption and which enjoys the benefits of consuming unmodified vegetable oil and nutritional fibers.